Mrs. Brown on the General Election.

Observer, Issue 780, 9 December 1893, Page 6

Mrs. Brown on the General Election.

TO THE EDITOR. Dbab Mb Edditub,— I was pleased to see that you put in my letter without halterin>£the spelling, wich is my hown sistem, being wot they call f onetic. My youngest girl, Mary Ann, or Marion as she sines herself (wieh she says Mary Ann is so common and vulgar, and I tell her Mary Ann ia quite uncommon now-a-days, when every dirty little gntter child is called Ethel or Gladys, or Gwendoline), but as I was a saying Marion (if she likes it so) is a graduate of the New Zealand University, and real nice she looks in her gown and hood and cap, and she ses as I have no business to spell wuds f onetically, and that it looks as if I didn t no how to spell. She has her vote, and she has her opinion and I have mine. I don t mean to say as ever I was eddicated like Marion, or heven like Eliza Jane, wioh is my heldest, and has been married these ten years, and as fine a famerly of five as you'd wish to see, and the youngest just cutting his teeth and ray ther fractious, and I tell Eliza Jane it's all along of her going about so much at the election time, and getting on committees and canvassing and attending public meetings, wich natuerlly all hupßetsthe milk and makes baby, pore little deer, suffer. Then the girls tell me that I'm hold-fashioned and behind the day and not fandersickle or some such rubbidge [qy . fin de sierfe-Ed. Ob.] But, then, young people always think old people are fools, but old people know that young people are fools. „ But wot I was agoing to say MrEdditur is this, that wile I was not registered myself and don't mean to be, for you can t teach an hold dog new tricks,— l think it is quite right as respectable women should register and vote, now that they have what they call the franchise. There was a lot of very perlite gentlemen called on me and wanted me to sign a paper about getting a vote, but you don't ketch Martha Brown signing no papers again for the perlitest gentleman as ever walked to the door, after that Pictooresh Atlas business, wich 1 had to pay for hout of my 7iow» savings, for Brown he ses, ses he, you'd better pay this time old woman, and then you 11 not be let n agin. And they'll be your own property under the married women's property hact. In course I might have coaxed it out of Brown if I'd been minded, but I thort it better not, so I paid hafter being summoned. . But this is wandering from the pint, as Brown ses I'm always doing. My darters, all of them, registered and voted— five of them, but not all of them in Auckland. Four of them is married, and all of them voted the same ticket as their husbands except Eliza Jane, and she plumped for Sir George. Eliza Jane she ses, We must get the dear old man in, he is bo nice and perlite to the ladies, and speaks so beautiful.' And Marion, she turns up her nose, and ses, ' Well, I ham going to vote for him because he is the honly one ot the candidates who has received the higher heducation.' And Brown he ses, Im agoing to vote for him, because he s saved this here blessed colony and done more for it than any hother man living or dead, and'though I think he'd do better for hisself if he was to retire and live peacerbly at Parnell, yet if he likes to die in harness, well I'm of opinion that he oughter be allowed to do so. And as I don't care a— 'Par!' ses Marion, reproachfully. * Don t you be quite so fast, Miss Square Cap {that's what Brown calls her, for she's the youngest and a pet), I wasn't going to say nothing wrong, only as I don t care a brass farden— you never see a farthing, 3i<l you for any of the other candidates, I shall plump for Sir George.' Well, it's my oppinion that Sir George got in at the top of the poll through the ladies' votes. And I will say this for the men that they behaved uncommon well, for I went with Marion to the polling place and there was lots of men around but all most kind and hobliging, and never a word or a look as seemed to show as they thought women had no right to vote. I didn't see a single •drunken man about anywhere, no more did Brown, and Brown ses there am t any fun about an election here, under the ballot. Lor', &es he, you should have Been the larst contested election I took part in. And I remember it well myself , and making up yards and yards of ribbon (blue was our colour) into favours, wich we wore and the men wore, and all the oarridges with flags on them, and the 'orses heads tied up with blue ribbon, and the money spent like water, and the feasting of the committee-men and others at ■the candidate's expense. I remember it all and tne cardidates remembered it, too' for many a day, for it cost them more than twelve thousand pounds a-piece for that election. . ..,.., But, laws, I'm running on again, it 8 jiat wot Marion see, 'you've got a certain amount of humour, Mar, which ib unusual in our sect, but you are very diffuse and tmlogical. I think it's from the overdevelopment of the maternal instinct at the expense of the more intellectooal

faculties ot the brain . Lor ! wot does she mean? She ain't got no. maternal ' instinct at all. She told me she thought 1 babies were disgustin' little animals ! — Touts affeckshonately, I Mabtha Bkown. December 2.